


we're in this together, you know

by HeavensArcher



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Families of Choice, Gen, I love my disaster wizard dad and his adopted goblin daughter, he just wants his daughter to tell him when she wants to steal things., nott. nott is the answer to that question, why was caleb in such a rough way that morning?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-30
Updated: 2018-01-30
Packaged: 2019-03-11 10:03:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,400
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13521930
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HeavensArcher/pseuds/HeavensArcher
Summary: the night before the night before they met everyone else, there was a bit of an 'incident' that led to Caleb collapsing in a magical exhaustion for 20hours.





	we're in this together, you know

The man’s breath was ragged as he raced through the streets. His long coat blew behind him and his eyes burned from the cold.

“Hold on, Nott. It’s going to be fine.” He whispered, clutching the small body in his arms closer as his pounding feet echoed through the streets, the loud footsteps behind him growing ever closer.

“Caleb, I’m sorry…” Nott whimpered. Caleb looked down at her again, desperate to make sure she really was ok. Luckily she had been agile enough to dodge when the group had caught her stealing from their food bags, but unfortunately her legs just weren’t long enough to outrun them. Now he was getting tired himself, arms beginning to burn from even her light weight.

“It’s ok, Nott. It’s fine. We’re going to be fine.” Caleb reassured her as he turned down a side street. His eyes lost details as the little light the moon provided disappeared briefly behind a cloud. He briefly considered casting Dancing Lights, but quickly shook the thought away. He still hoped they could just run and giving their pursuers a beacon to follow probably wouldn’t help.

The little goblin curled closer but turned her face to the direction they were running, quietly beginning to warn him of things his human eyes couldn’t quite see. That one loose cobblestone in front, step to the right. There’s a puddle, watch out. There’s a slight incline here, try not to slide.

The footsteps got ever closer, their owners clearly from these parts and far more familiar with the layout of the town and from the looks of them, far more used to working this time of night. They didn’t shout, but they were relentless. Thieves, from what he’d gathered during that initial confrontation. They probably didn’t want the Crownsguards’ attention any more than they did.

“How far do you think we are from the inn now?” Caleb asked between big gasps of air. His evenings reading hadn’t really prepared him for this much running.

Nott’s face grew pensive, “Not close enough, I should think.” Her big, yellow eyes blinked up at him. “You need to put me down, Caleb. They’re only after me because of my Itch. I knew you wouldn’t want me to but I did it anyway and it’s my fault…”

Caleb hugged her tighter, “No, no, no. You know I just wish you would tell me. We’re in this together, Nott. We’re family. We should be doing these things together.” He vaguely recognised the area now, despite the strangeness that came with seeing a familiar area at night when you had only seen it in the day. Nott was right, there was no way he could keep up his speed to their bed for the night.

He swerved down an alley.

“Caleb, no this is a dead-end! Caleb!” Nott began hurriedly whispering and pulling at his coat. Caleb put her down behind some crates.

“I can’t keep running. You stay safe and hopefully I can distract them enough for you to get away.”

Nott’s eyes narrowed. “I’m not leaving you behind! You said we’re in this together!” She reached to her side and pulled out her hand crossbow before looking up at him and disappearing into the shadows.

“Nott! Nott! Damn it,” Caleb swore, knowing there was no way he could find her now between the darkness and her natural stealth.

“Oi! You!” came a gruff voice, as 4 men blocked off the entrance to the alley. “Where’s ya little friend?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Caleb muttered, looking any direction but them. Without Nott his bravery seemed to fade. Gods what was he doing? This was idiotic…

“Yer little _goblin_ friend. Can’t imagine one of them monsters is supposed to be in the city. Pity if the Crownsguard found out _you_ snuck em in.”

At that threat, Caleb looked up. That wouldn’t end well for the two of them and the look on the leader’s face said he knew that.

“I won’t let you hurt her,” Caleb said, swallowing and wrapping his fingers around the diamond in his pocket. The little girl had saved his life, and her sticky fingers had provided them a meal more often than he could count now. She mightn’t be of one of the more accepted races, but she’d accepted Caleb far easier than any he’d known for a while. Being with her was easy. She was…like a daughter. Suddenly, his bravery surged back and he brought the diamond in front of his stomach. It glowed dimly at first, then bright as it began to spin faster and faster, an orb forming an inch above it that glowed white at first, before turning to a deep, ominous red.

“Shit, ‘e’s a mage!” One of the called, the 3 of them rushing forward to try and hit him to distract him from his frantic murmuring and visualisation as he reached within himself to where the words and components met and everything clicked and suddenly a burning beam of extreme heat burst forth from the orb, meeting one of the lackeys head on. His scream cut short as it burned straight through his skull and out the other side.

His momentary victory was distracted by a knife coming towards his side. He barely noticed in time, bending out of the way as the knife slashed through where his stomach had once been. He frantically began thinking of his next spell, trying to get it in order so he could cast it. It was hard with people right in range – he couldn’t dodge and cast effectively at the same time. The diamond was still spinning above his hand, it’s orb once again a soft white. He could cast another chromatic orb? The spell was still mostly in place, it wouldn’t take as much concentration to simply repeat a spell he’d just cast.

He was briefly distracted by a sharp cry, the second lackey going down in a heap as one of Nott’s bolts found his neck. The main thug looking around in disbelief and fear before turning straight to Caleb and raising his sword with a determined glint in his eye.

Briefly, Caleb thought he hadn’t gotten the spell off. But then a bolt of blue-white light burst between them, catching the man on the shoulder and causing him to drop the sword as he groaned in pain. Then another shot from Nott, the man so preoccupied with Caleb she was able to aim true to deal the most damage possible.

He fell.

He didn’t get up.

Caleb collapsed to the ground. His legs jelly, and his body completely exhausted from the last two spells he could have cast today. His last. God, is this what magical exhaustion was, he hadn’t felt it in so long. A small body ran straight into his lap, wrapping her small arms around his torso and he hugged her back just as tightly. “I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry,” Nott whispered frantically, checking the spot in his coat where the knife had slightly slashed the fabric so close to his skin.

“It’s alright,” Caleb whispered into her hood tiredly. “We’re ok.”

Nott had to help him upright as he staggered sideways onto the wall. “Nott, I need you to check ahead. We can’t get caught here, we’ll go to jail.” Nott nodded determinedly, darting to the entrance to the alley and back, helping Caleb slowly move his exhausted body towards their room.

The Nestled Nook inn was dark, only a few embers left in the torches as even the innkeeper had gone off to bed for the night. Nott quickly picked the lock and then locked it again behind them as they snuck back up to their room and collapsed fully clothed onto the bed. The chase through the streets leaving them dirty but too exhausted to care. Nott curled up at Caleb’s feet, her eyes blinking slowly in the darkness.

“Get some sleep, Nott,” Caleb whispered tiredly, “Everything will be better in the morning.”

The morning ended up being not the morning after this night, but the morning after, as Caleb slept straight through the day without a sign of waking. Nott snuck out once to quiet the Itch. And it turns out, that the morning wasn’t necessarily better – but it bought far more interesting characters, interesting events, and – perhaps – some potential.


End file.
